Dog Days of winter

Any tips for getting a dog clued in for more BC skills? We are trying to get our Samoyed trained for a yurt trip to the Wallowas. He is sharp enough and has been hiking with me up hills, but he doesn't seem to get the idea that he needs to follow me. he ahs been known to just hang out assuming I'll be back that same way, or hike down the skin track instead of slavishly following his master like a good pup.

My Bernese took to the snow, and BC hiking pretty well. The first few times he would just take off running like a nut down the slopes....but there was one time I took off down the slope , then stopped and found he wasn't following???? I took off my gear and headed back up the slope to find where he was, and when I got back to the top he was still standing just where he was when I went down. I found he would not go over slopes where he could not see beyond the curve of the hill (too steep). I then angled down and he then took off like gang-busters. Funny guy he was, but he sure loved the snow and was my best hiking buddy.

Regarding hiking down the skin track, if it's deep deep snow, then this may be a sign that you want to clue into, and perhaps consider modifying your trip down so he won't hurt himself. Not saying this is his issue, but you do want to be aware that dogs don't have snowshoes or skis on their feet, and that they can get chronic back trouble from too much postholing through bottomless pow, even though they'll do it repeatedly in order to stay with you, given the strength of their social instincts. We started to learn to either let our guys stay home in these conditions, or we planned a tour where our down route was close enough to the uptrack that we could keep tabs on each other as we descended (a few times we got a little far apart, I'd hear one of our guys in the skin track barking loudly at us to get back with the program!).

I know some folks think that dogs are just made for travel in any sort of snow condition, but it doesn't seem to be true, at least with the dogs I've traveled with. They clearly did a LOT better when there was a solid base 14" or less down (spring skiing in well consolidated conditions was clearly their favorite!).

Like teaching any dog anything, working with them frequently will help them understand what is expected of them. Some dogs are made for snow (you would think a Samoyed would be one of those) and others are more like get me out of here. I had a Golden Retriever/Husky mix (Rif) who was born for snow. Started training him to pull me on my touring skis his first winter as soon as he was big enough. Going downhill got crazy at times. Had to seriously watch out for him banking me into trees and rocks. If he saw another dog it was all over. Turbo thrusters! He was an exception though. He followed us skiing from Aspen to Crested Butte over Pearl Pass (something like 26 miles) post holing to his armpits the entire way. I could barely make it to the truck and he still had the energy to go run cows at the end of the tour. Unfortunately, like all of us will, he got old and just passed away this fall. He was the perfect skiing/hiking companion.
Anyway, start slow with reasonable distances and snow conditions. Make it fun for him. Take him with you every chance you get and he will figure it out. Like following you as you break trail but learning not to walk on the backs of your skis. Practice, practice, practice.
Good luck.

Dont forget the duct tape!

Oh yea, and shaving the long hair out from between the paw pads at the start of winter makes the intervals between having to pick out ice balls inbetween the toes longer. (Use clippers, not scissors or you will likely be spending $$$ at your vets )